How do I get my horse to stay on the bit?

Question

I have a 6yr old Arab Gelding. I have been trying to get him to stay on the bit, with no success. I have tried side reins, martingales, sursingles, ect. I can get his head to drop into the bit but he wont stay there. The second I let off the pressure, his head comes up everytime. I've tried holding his head down with pressure without releasing and he will stay there but it's exhausting because he is fighting me for the bit the whole time. The more I hold his head in the right place the more he pulls and trys to put his head back up. At this point both of us are frusterated with this exercise. I have had 2 trainers try to cure him and he's too stuborn to change his head placement. If anyone can help I would appreciate it.

Answer 1

i would try to encourage him to drop his head a little differently.  it will work best at the trot.  when he has established a nice forward trot on a 20 or 30 meter circle, maintain an even contact on the outside rein for support (not hard and heavy...just enough to let him know you are there to balance him, and not to let him turn inward on the circle).  with your inside rein begin massaging it...i dont know how to describe it other than maintaining a contact and squeezing your fingers to move the bit on the inside part of circle in his mouth.  while you are massaging the inside rein, make sure when you sit on that part of the trot (we are working posting trot) you also squeeze your legs. when you rise in the saddle no squeeze, sit squeeze etc...til he drops his head.  as soon as he does, stop the massaging of the inside rein, but maintain an elastic contct...do not drop the contact., and just maintain the contact.  as soon as his head goes up start all over ...set outside hand, massage inside rein, squeeze both legs.  after a while it should only require a little massge on the inside (it should not be a really visable thing to someone watching) and leg squeeze.  keep ur sessions short, and give him a big verbal reward when he does good.  do not drop your reins and pat him, as this undoes everything you just worked to get. you must maintain a good forward gait for this to work...no more puttering or letting him rush around. a nice even working gait at all times.  let me know how it goes.  be patient...it will require alot practice. one step at a time.

edit... in a nutshell, get his teeth checked.  loose the contraptions , work in a medium thick snaffle or dr. bristol, more leg, leg, leg!!!!!

Answer 2

I have encountered the same problem with many green horses. When your horse goes on the bit (stretches from wither to poll) stop what your doing and when his head comes up get his head back down and then when he does stop and just contine this, he will learn that when he yeilds to the bit the pressure stops and he will stay there but the worst thing to to is to try and maintain the contact, like i said once he drops his head stop with all of your aids. Also this takes time as with all aspects of training young, green horses so give him time and start at the walk too when he can successfully stay on the bit at the walk for the whole/ at least 90% of the lesson then you can move up to the trot. **Patients**(lol)

-Also on the veternarian side of things, when horses go on the bit it engages their back muscles so his back muscles may be sore from a beginner rider or a rider who isnt quiet in the saddle or a poor fitting saddle. So have a vet check him out. :D

-One more thing I have learned, dont spend the whole lesson working on getting him on the bit spend a little while and then progress to do something else. If he is constantly bombarded with this 'bad experience' he may be reluctant to let you mount/ride him etc.

I know it seems overwhelming(imagine how i feel with all of this junk piled up in my brain lol jk) what i do when a horses vice overwhenlmes me is i create a lesson plan on how i will ride and do everything in order from grooming to putting him back in his stall. This helps you organize all of your thoughts and when you go to ride having a 'game' plan will put you on the right track to getting your horse into proper training.

GOOD LUCK! :D

Answer 3

Are you asking this horse to frame up in a way that is comformationally correct for him?

I ride Paint horses which are conformationally made to ride level, it isn't difficult for them to bring their neck straight out from their withers and keep their pole level.  Without training they tend to raise their heads when speeding up, during transitions and when excited, so the main thing I need to do is teach my horse to perform consistently, not to make a fake headset.

Arabs naturally have a different headset due to a different conformation as a breed than Paints.  So my question is - can your horse physically do the type of headset you are requiring of her?  It is typical of horses that are forced in a headset to spring back up into their natural headset the moment they are released.  So I would suggest you spend some time standing back and evaluating your horse, look at how she naturally moves in the pasture and on a lunge line without sidereins or anything.  How should she pack her neck?  Decide that before going any further?

Also, is there any physical problems that are making this job difficult?  Dental pain?  Thick, thick throat latch?  Neck or back issues?  Check that out before getting into a training type fight with your horse.

I don't think your horse is just being stubborn.  I doubt he says to himself "I think I will ignore her cue to drop my head and let her yank as hard as she can and hurt my mouth, just to bug her.  And I'll do that all the time."  No, I think he truely does not understand what you want, especially if you aren't having success and keep trying different methods.

It sounds like you have been able to "force" your horse into a headset, but he has not associated it with being a comfortable and safe place to do.  That is what you need to teach him - when your head is here you are comfortable.  When it isn't, then you will have some pressure.

Hate to say it, but you have to go back to square one like he's a young horse, and take away all the extra tools and teach him what you want, and why it will make him comfortable when you are there.  I know its boring, but it will be the only answer for you.

Saddle and bridle your horse, stick with a well fitting snaffle.  Using two reins, have him at a halt and apply direct pressure to both reins.  Bring your hands back to your legs, don't pull like a maniac, but make it so its uncomfortable.  Then don't pull or jerk anymore.  Keep that pressure no matter what he does, if he throws his head, backs up, yanks on the bit, you must apply constant, non-jerky pressure to the bit.  The very second he does two things - stop moving his feet and drops his head even half an inch, release total pressure.  Drop the reins fast, you want an INSTANT release the moment he drops his head/neck.  Give him ten seconds to stand quetly, then ask again.  Do not ask for a perfect headset, ask only that he drops his head.  And it isn't enough that he drops his head but pulls on the reins, he must give you a tiny bit of release with the reins.

Now its up to you.  You must be patient and wait out the tight pull. See-sawing, yanking, wiggling the reins work to drop their heads, but they don't achieve the goal you want.  Instead apply direct pressure and the out-wait your horse.  If he totally ignores you for minutes at a time its okay to apply a bit more weight to the reins, but do not jerk.  The most essential parts are this 1)release the very second he drops his head even if its for only a split second and 2)do this consistently.  I would do this for ten minutes a day for a few days in a row and I think you will soon discover that he can drop really quickly, and on his own he will start to keep it down longer.

After he will do this, then go to step two, which is to walk him forward, and then apply pressure with both your legs and both reins.  Keep him walking, and the second he drops his head, release all pressure with both legs and reins and allow him to walk.  Walk him ten or twenty feet, then get him to drop again briefly.

If you are patient you will start to teach your horse the concept.  I don't think your horse understand this yet.  But he can learn "right place, feels really good."  Then it just takes lots of time and consistency to get them to start keeping it down longer and longer periods.  Do not focus on only headsetting, make this a small part of your riding lessons.  But if you do this for two weeks in a row, before long he will keep his head down naturally for longer periods while you ride on a loose rein.  The key to this when they've done it for a while is - you must allow them to make a mistake and put their head up and in a wrong position, then you must make it tight and uncomfortable when they do that, and then you must give them relief the second they drop.  Even if you know they will raise their head again, you must reward them.  if you do that, they can learn if there is nothing physically wrong with them.

Don't expect a 30 day miracle with this horse.  Many horses with problems with headsetting take 90 days of regular work before the become consistent.

Also, buy Clinton Anderson's DVD set called "Riding with Confidence" set #1, you can get them on eBay for about $50.  He talks in great detail how to do this, and more.  A good part of your solution is also teaching your horse to give his head to the side with similiar type cues, except obviously using only one reins.

Answer 4

Ask him to put his head down, when he does release. When he puts it back up, ask him again. Don't give him more then a second with his head up, immediately ask him to put it back down and give him a big release. With the horses I've been working with, I find a training fork works - MUST be fitted properly. (The ring should reach the top of the shoulder if you pull it a little to the side.)

But if you've tried this with no results I would either try it again, or just forget about it - you know your horse better so you should decide.

Try working him in a snaffle bit if you're not. When he get's it in a snaffle then move to your normal bit. With a snaffle you can be a bit more in their mouth then other bits, and with a horse that won't set his head or stay on the bit, sometimes you have to pull on their mouth a little more.

Good luck.

Answer 5

is it the bit? You might need to change your bit.

Answer 6

I agree with see arr harr all those training gadgets can ruin a horse and cause more problems in the long run, have you tried a different bit ,you should definatley  have his teeth checked too that could be the problem, try more ground work with him that always helps to resolve some riding issues.

Answer 7

Step away from the side reins.

By holding his head down all you're doing is creating a false image. The head may be in, and may look like it's in the "right" place, but you have to ask yourself WHY you want it to be there. If you want it to look pretty - give up. If you want it there so he's using his body properly - wrong, he's not. All he's doing is holding his head where you want it, he's resisting, and obviously if you release the pressure he puts his head where he wants it.

At 6, he's still very young. When horses are inexperienced they need to use their head, neck and shoulders to balance. If you try to take that away from them they'll fall forwards and (as you know) the head will fly up at the earliest opportunity. So let him use his head to balance. Get rid of the gadgets - they're a waste of money and a shortcut to a ruined horse. Get him moving forwards from his hind legs. You need energy behind - that's where the horse's engine is. When he is consistently moving forwards correctly and using his hind legs properly, with correct hands he will come round onto the bit.

He'll offer it for a split second at first. It takes a lot of muscle in the neck to stay in the right place - and of course he'll be using the muscles right across his back. I wouldn't expect a horse under 8 or 9 to be comfortably on the bit when asked. He isn't stubborn - he's finding it bloody hard, and to be honest you're not helping him with your current method.